Category Archives: British-Irish relations

Why did 20th century Irish governments make so many mistakes when dealing with the North and unity?

Posted on Wednesday, 27 August, 2025 by andypollak

Much of my summer reading this year has been 20th century Irish history, and the work of superb historians like Alvin Jackson, Paul Bew, Diarmaid Ferriter, Oliver MacDonagh and others. One thing that has struck me forcibly is how many … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, General, Irish reunification, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland | Tagged , , , , | 12 Comments

Does Dublin’s anti-immigration riot mark the beginning of the end of Ireland’s image of openness and tolerance?

Posted on Tuesday, 28 November, 2023 by andypollak

Last Thursday morning I sat down to write a blog in which I was aiming to argue that Ireland (the Republic) had been hugely successful in integrating a large number of immigrants over the past 20-25 years, and that this … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, General, Republic of Ireland | 3 Comments

What have the British ever done for us? Quite a bit, actually

Posted on Wednesday, 1 November, 2023 by andypollak

One of the recurrent themes of these blogs is that if we are going to welcome 900,000 Unionists into a ‘new Ireland’, we are going to have to accept and respect their passionate Britishness. And that is going to be … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, General, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland | 2 Comments

Will the United Kingdom under Liz Truss be in danger of stepping out on the road to fascism?

Posted on Friday, 29 July, 2022 by andypollak

From an Irish viewpoint, the prospect of Liz Truss becoming Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is deeply worrying. This is the woman who as Foreign Secretary has outdone Boris Johnson in her aggressive rejection of the Northern Ireland protocol, … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, General | 3 Comments

The tragic breakdown of relations between Dublin and London and a 1998 Agreement that was not the last word

Posted on Wednesday, 29 June, 2022 by andypollak

The most tragic element of Brexit and its aftermath – for me as a Northern Irish person who is also a happy citizen of the Republic of Ireland – is the total breakdown in relations between the Irish and British … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, General, Northern Ireland | Leave a comment

A pessimistic speech on the 20th anniversary of the Centre for Cross Border Studies

Posted on Friday, 27 September, 2019 by andypollak

The Centre for Cross Border Studies celebrated its 20th anniversary in Dundalk last week with a conference reflecting on the Good Friday Agreement and cross-border cooperation. The importance of the Centre’s work was recognised by the keynote speakers, the three … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, Cross-border cooperation, General, Northern Ireland | 2 Comments

Two Irish mistakes as we hurtle towards the Brexit cliff edge

Posted on Wednesday, 21 August, 2019 by andypollak

Readers of this blog will know that I have been a voice in the wilderness when it comes to querying the wisdom of the Irish government’s ‘backstop’ strategy to avoid a hard border on the island following the UK’s exit … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, General, Ireland, Europe and the world, Irish reunification, Northern Ireland | 3 Comments

Mutual contempt and ignorance are no way to build relations between peoples (especially in Ireland)

Posted on Sunday, 24 March, 2019 by andypollak

As the crisis deepens in Britain, the old negative stereotypes are back. The right-wing British press is full of fury at the treacherous role of the Irish in the ‘backstop’ to keep the UK hobbled and handcuffed indefinitely to the … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, General, Northern Ireland, Protestantism, unionism and loyalism, Republic of Ireland | 3 Comments

On this occasion it was a DUP politician who talked the most sense

Posted on Tuesday, 14 August, 2018 by andypollak

Sometimes I despair of the poor understanding of the people of this Republic about what makes the Northern quarter of this island tick. It is not helped by poor reporting of what happens there. We had another example of this … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, General, Northern Ireland | 1 Comment

Could an all-island economy be part of the Brexit deal?

Posted on Wednesday, 10 January, 2018 by andypollak

Perhaps the most interesting phrase in the 8 December agreement between the UK and EU was that, in the absence of agreed solutions, not only would the UK maintain full alignment with the rules of the Single Market and the … Continue reading →

Posted in British-Irish relations, Cross-border cooperation, General, Ireland, Europe and the world, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland | 1 Comment